Hargett Street pedestrian improvement project underway

Published: Monday, July 22, 2013 at 12:00 PM.

A partnership with the N.C. Department of Transportation will lead to improvements in pedestrian safety in the Hargett Street area at half the planned cost, according to city officials.

The N.C. DOT will resurface Hargett Street next spring and with that comes an opportunity for the city to improve pedestrian safety at the Hargett Street and New River Drive intersection and the Bell Fork Road and Hargett Street intersection.

The improvements will include marked high-visibility crosswalks, ADA-compliant handicap curb ramps and pedestrian countdown signals, according to the city.

The work will cost the city about half of what it would normally cost to implement the improvements if it were solely a city project. Total cost of the project for
Jacksonville
government is expected to be $58,500.

The cost is solely for equipment, said City Transportation Services Administrator Anthony Prinz.

Crosswalks won’t be the only thing changing, however. Once the work is complete the traffic pattern will also be different.

“We’re going to narrow it from a four lane undivided roadway to a three way roadway going either direction and a center turn lane. And with that, you’d have striped bicycle lanes specifically for those users,” Prinz said.

A partnership with the N.C. Department of Transportation will lead to improvements in pedestrian safety in the Hargett Street area at half the planned cost, according to city officials.

The N.C. DOT will resurface Hargett Street next spring and with that comes an opportunity for the city to improve pedestrian safety at the Hargett Street and New River Drive intersection and the Bell Fork Road and Hargett Street intersection.

The improvements will include marked high-visibility crosswalks, ADA-compliant handicap curb ramps and pedestrian countdown signals, according to the city.

The work will cost the city about half of what it would normally cost to implement the improvements if it were solely a city project. Total cost of the project for Jacksonville government is expected to be $58,500.

The cost is solely for equipment, said City Transportation Services Administrator Anthony Prinz.

Crosswalks won’t be the only thing changing, however. Once the work is complete the traffic pattern will also be different.

“We’re going to narrow it from a four lane undivided roadway to a three way roadway going either direction and a center turn lane. And with that, you’d have striped bicycle lanes specifically for those users,” Prinz said.

The project will also include replacement of the Rails-to-Trails lighting system at a crossing area since it is expected to be damaged to the point of being unable to be repaired during the removal process for the N.C. DOT’s resurfacing project. The city is responsible for replacing the system due to an encroachment agreement with the DOT and is working on the design for a new mid-block crossing to replace what will be removed.

Prinz said the utility work is underway now. He expects the work to be complete by summer 2014.

Amanda Hickey is the government reporter at The Daily News. She can be reached at amanda.hickey@jdnews.com.